Taylor Lorenz’s Power User

Will Sommer, reporter covering conservative media for The Bulwark, walks through the rapid unraveling of Ben Shapiro’s media project. He details internal feuds, failed “conservative Hollywood” bets, platform algorithm crashes that wiped traffic, and how rivals and generational shifts drained the audience. Short, sharp stories about power, money, and media collapse.

Thomas DeKaiser, academic and author of Techno-Negative who studies historical resistance to technology. He traces anti-tech movements from Luddites to anarchists and medieval skeptics. Conversations cover AI backlash, labor and surveillance concerns, environmental costs, Silicon Valley politics, and what makes resistance productive today.

Kat Tenbarge, a journalist who investigates gender-based violence and online harms, breaks down how a viral “62 million men” claim was actually a misleading traffic stat. She explains the manufactured “Global Academy” narrative, the role of activist groups in amplifying the story, and how tech policy debates get shaped by sensational reporting.

Corbin K. Barthold, Internet Policy Counsel at Tech Freedom and author defending AI under the First Amendment, discusses whether AI outputs count as protected speech. He examines legal theories used to justify censorship. He warns about government control over LLMs and critiques laws like New York’s S7263. He also explores risks around chatbots, lawsuits, and why free expression matters for AI.

Adam Aleksic, etymologist and cultural commentator on internet language, decodes how online habits signal class. He dissects filtered photos, private billionaire accounts, curated photo dumps, platform migration to niche spaces, and how fonts, AI choices, and bios reveal status. Short, sharp takes on digital white flight, surveillance limits on identity play, and the rising cost of online culture.

Kristin Robinson, Billboard senior correspondent who broke the Geese story, explains modern music marketing. She narrates how meme pages and niche TikTok networks are used to seed songs. She describes targeted placement, armies of accounts that shape comments, and tactics that manufacture online buzz. The conversation probes how virality is engineered and what that means for music authenticity.

Noah Shachtman, investigative journalist focused on surveillance and national security, unveils how a billionaire-built system uses facial recognition and private investigators at major venues. He recounts intense Pride Night tracking, the creation of online dossiers and watchlists, and how private intelligence tools have scaled from Vegas to MSG spaces.

Kat Tenbarge, journalist at Spitfire News who covers tech culture, breaks down Big Tech’s PR pivot to women. She explores the rise of “AI girly pop,” influencer-driven trends, aesthetic filters, and tools pitched to moms and creators. Short, sharp takes on how style and charm are being used to normalize and sell AI.

Albert Fox Cahn, legal scholar and founder of the Surveillance Technology Oversight Project, critiques Silicon Valley’s speed-first tech culture. He calls out costly metaverse hype, Ring’s private surveillance risks, the pitfalls of police body cameras, and the AI bubble. He champions slow, incremental, and evidence-based fixes over flashy, risky innovations.

Areeba Fatima, a journalist at DropSite News who’s tracked Explosive Media, outlines how Iranian Gen Z creators turned LEGO clips into viral political messaging. She dives into the videos’ game-like aesthetics, AI-powered music and production, how they spread across political lines, and the group’s Telegram roots and tech-savvy tactics under sanctions.